Month: June 2017

June 25, 2017

You Can Have a Ball With Our Waterproof Switches

In fact, we’ve been having one for over 70 years now. Our J4 series waterproof ball switches might be considered the belle of the ball, when it comes to high performance, high electromechanical endurance, waterproof ball switches.

The CPI J4 Waterproof Ball Switch is used in thousands of product and vehicle applications all over the world, and has been for decades now. If we had to pick one reason why so many manufacturers eventually gravitate to our ball switches in their application, it would be this:

Durability.

The Patented J4 Seal – An Engineering Marvel.

J4 Waterproof Ball SwitchForgive us if we gush a bit, but after replacing thousands of other manufacturer ball switches in the field, it finally occurred to us that our patented J4 ball switch design was indeed unique in the industry. The patented double seal design and solid stainless steel construction conspire to create a high level of survivability, in some of the most toxic environments that machines find themselves in.

Just a few of places our J4 ball (and plunger switch variation which uses the same double seal mechanism) are used include:

  • Neutral Safety Detection for Industrial Vehicles
  • Boom Locking Safety Feedback on Agricultural sprayers
  • Crane Cable End of Travel Detection
  • Outrigger stabilization feedback switch on Emergency Vehicles and Work Trucks.
  • Parking Brake On Detection Switch
  • Hatch Closed/Open detection in critical military vehicle applications.
  • Torpedo Door/Open Closed – Yea it’s wet in the torpedo bay and you better be darn sure the door is open before you fire…

The Secret To Durability and Endurance Is…

Well actually it’s a few things. It all starts with a small form factor, all stainless steel construction. At the heart of the J4 is its patented ball carrier design which prevents contaminates such as mud, dirt, ice, sand, dust, etc. from jamming the ball. This double seal design actually forces airborne contaminants from the chamber upon switch release, where other switches are most vulnerable. This constant purging of contaminants is one of the reasons our switch has been qualified to over 1 million cycles of electromechanical endurance.

Furthermore the switches are completely submersible and are unaffected by water, salt spray, humidity, dirt, dust, sand, icing, oil, shock and vibration.

It Plunges Too

The same patented ball carrier design used on our J4 ball switch is used in our plunger actuator variant, allowing a host of different implementations to take advantage of what is essentially the same robust, sealed, and completely waterproof operation.

View your J4 Plunger Switch Data Sheet Here

And finally the CPI team can modify, and quality your switch into your application providing all appropriate mechanical and environmental documentation to satisfy even the most stringent regulatory requirements. We’ve done it many, many times.

Make the Switch To CPI

If you think you might have an application for one of our completely waterproof ball or plunger switches, don’t hesitate to give us a call.  Or check out all our Waterproof Limit Switch Options.

Our application engineers are standing by to chat.

Original content posted on https://www.cpi-nj.com/blog/you-can-have-a-ball-with-our-waterproof-switches/

June 10, 2017

Marine Riser and Tensioner System Hydraulics – Revisited.

Last year we discussed CPI sensor solutions for Oilfield hydraulic accumulators and cylinders, but in the fast-paced world of oilfield engineering, that was a long time ago.

For instance in 2016, CPI didn’t have a fully subsea capable (qualified to 5000ft), intrinsic safety rated (ATEX, IEC-EX) linear position sensor for hydraulic cylinders and accumulators.

But now we do. Meet the CPI SL2000

The CPI SL2000 was specifically designed to meet the needs of heavy duty hydraulic system manufacturers, who seek robust, accurate, and reliable solutions to position or charge sensing in long stroke cylinders or accumulators.

With a high-tech mechanical assembly and space-age material science, the CPI sensor surpasses the durability of all other sensor measurement technologies as well as other draw wire sensor technologies. For harsh duty internal or external cylinder applications, CPI’s technology may be the most hardened, reliable solution in the world.

Marine Riser And Tensioner System Hydraulics

Tensioner systems come in many designs but typically employ multiple hydraulic cylinders for stabilizers or the riser will buckle when the rig moves downward, and stretch when the rig rises. If you gather around the moon pool of any offshore rig or vessel during a storm you’ll see a riser/tensioner system hard at work. These systems use a bank of hydraulic accumulators to drive piston displacements in reaction to the heaving of a heavy sea. It is crucial that the tensioner can manage differential movements between the riser and the rig in real time to prevent shearing or undue stress on the wellhead. These huge and powerful accumulators are constructed using a gas and hydraulic fluid and can drive displacements from 10 to 15 meters.

Using the SL 2000 in Oil Platform Hydraulics

Because the core measurement technology of the sensor is mechanical draw wire, there are far less things to go wrong with a CPI sensor in a harsh environment. Furthermore the core sensing mechanics are incompressible allowing the sensor to operate inside the hydraulic cylinder, submersed in hydraulic fluid at full pressure. This kind of mounting flexibility makes for a clean integration into most cylinders and small external form factor for applications where a short magnetostrictive sensor is used as the transducer.

A few other notes about our linear position sensor technology.

  • Because of our innovative draw wire design, we can easily operate for the long stroke lengths in a marine riser tensioner system. CPI sensors have operated with high accuracy to 15 meters of stroke.
  • The CPI SL2000 can be mounted in any hydraulic cylinder or hydraulic accumulator that is at least 8″ ID.
  • Hardened operation is a standard feature of our design. Our sensors have no sealed cavities and are completely immune to pressure. As such, they can be mounted on the oil or gas side of the cylinder, or even outside the cylinder.
  • A patented LVDT based implementation means the core sensing technology is completely non-contacting and immune to local EMI distortions.
  • Our sensor is the only hardened sensor in the world that works with telescoping hydraulics.

Riser Disconnect Sensing and Control

CPI Sensors on the oil platform are also used provide critical feedback during a riser disconnect scenario. In this event, the riser must be disconnected before the rig is critically out of position with respect to the well head. Typically a tensioner ring employs six hydraulic accumulators with six valves controlled by the computer through signals from the valves and the CPI linear position sensor which is acting as the piston rod measuring system providing absolute (not relative) position measurement signals. Some systems are implemented with the cylinders mounted directly to the tensioner ring. In these systems, a riser disconnect detected by the CPI linear position sensor will cause the valve to limit the oil-flow and the riser will not gain momentum. The controlling system adjusts the position of the valves and the riser is brought up in a controlled way using input from CPI linear position sensors like the SL2000.

Contact CPI for Questions About ATEX Rated, Subsea Capable, Harsh Duty Hydraulic Cylinder Position Sensors

Our engineering team builds, installs, and qualifies these sensors uniquely into each application. Many options are available in the design of your sensor that can make it more robust, longer stroke, or even custom external mounting options for existing In-the-field cylinder applications.

Please call our engineering team today to discuss your hydraulic accumulator based application or see all our harsh duty linear position sensors.

Original content posted on https://www.cpi-nj.com/blog/marine-riser-and-tensioner-system-hydraulics-revisited/